Starbucks Coffee Korea boosts cashless store ranks Starbucks Coffee Korea is adding 300 more ‘cashless shops’ in addition to the 103 stores currently in operation, starting on Monday. Cashless stores require customers use a means of payment other than cash. The company noted that adding 300 more cashless stores would amount to one-third of the 1200…Read more

Shopee claims Vietnam e-commerce market leadership Shopee has become the leading Vietnam e-commerce market player, followed by Lazada and Tiki. The Map of E-commerce in Vietnam report published by Iprice Insight, ranks the top 50 Vietnam e-commerce market players based on their average quarterly traffic, mobile application ranking, social media followers and number of staff,…Read more

GS Retail opens smart convenience store South Korean retailer GS Retail has opened a “smart convenience store” using facial-recognition technology. According to the company, the store will serve as a test bed for its automated retail systems. Facial recognition will be used for payments and door operation, while a checkout counter will use the image…Read more

JR East tests unmanned store in Tokyo A Japanese railway network operator is testing an unmanned store in a Tokyo railway station. The store will use artificial intelligence in place of cashiers to transact with customers in a trial expected to last about two months. The venture was opened by East Japan Railway, otherwise known…Read more

Habitat by Honestbee merges online and offline in technology testbed Online grocery service Honestbee has opened a retail space which merges cashless grocery store with a restaurant and a testbed for new retail technologies. Habitat by Honestbee in Pasir Panjang is billed as “the world’s first tech-integrated multi-sensory grocery and dining destination of its kind”.…Read more

Lotte Group plans US$2.8 billion e-commerce spend Korea’s Lotte Group plans to invest KRW3 trillion (US$2.8 billion) into its e-commerce business. Lotte Shopping CEO Kang Hee-tae says a comprehensive online shopping platform will integrate all eight of its online stores by 2020. Lotte Group will form a business department in August dedicated to developing its…Read more

Next-generation SK-II smart store opens in Shanghai An SK-II smart store has opened in Shanghai, an enhanced version of the global beauty brand’s technology-packed showcase which opened in Tokyo in May. The SK-II Future X Smart Store features facial recognition, computer vision, and AI technology augmented by the brand’s proprietary skin science and diagnostics. The…Read more

Hyundai Department Store offers high-tech make-up Hyundai Department Store’s online mall has launched an augmented reality (AR) service so its customers can virtually try on make-up products. It covers more than 20 products from eight beauty brands, including Benefit, Estee Lauder and Shu Uemura. Using an AR image of their face, customers can try on…Read more

Digital out of home – bus shelters, billboards and… bathroom mirrors? A new digital OOH player has entered the market, allowing brands to advertise on bathroom mirrors. Are shopping centre bathroom mirrors set to become the new competitive frontier for OOH? Living Image Media has launched with its primary digital offering, an interactive mirror to…Read more

Instagram taking over ecommerce? Introductions to Stories, Explore and possibly more Instagram is further cementing its position as an ecommerce platform, bringing shopping capabilities to its Stories and Explore environments. Today, Instagram has announced that its ‘shopping tags’ – a ‘shop now’ button below posts – will be expanding to its Stories and Explore environments.…Read more